When it comes to bars, ambiance and the crowd are oh so important to me! Because usually the beer and drinks are pretty similar from place to place, minus a few exceptional spots. So I was super curious when I heard about the Accordion Club. Located off of Geer Street in Durham, I wasn’t sure exactly where it was which made me excited to check it out on a quiet Saturday night! As we walk past the busy Motorco patio on Rigsbee and take a right onto Geer, I spot a dimly lit storefront in the corner of a plaza. Sitting in what used to be a tienda (which apparently had great vegetarian empanadas according to my friend, Susan), Accordion Club offers up few clues to the casual observer. Outside, there’s a small picnic table but the cool art deco doors and glass block front face give some hints about what may lie inside!
We duck into the Accordion Club and all I can think is, hmm… Interesting layout with a chill pool table area in front, through some arched entryways into the main bar area. From here, things get a bit more sexy! It’s a great space at the Accordion Club with a brick wall behind the bar, large plate glass mirrors and art deco hanging lamps overhead. Most of the seating is tall captain chairs giving the space a modern, 70’s-ish feel! And the crowd here is good: lively, chatty, 25 – 45 with a good mix of different types, I definitely like the scene. The MTV 80’s music popping overhead just completes the mood for me.
Heading over to the far end of the bar, I’m immediately greeted by the friendly barkeep. A gin and tonic goes in for my drink order and he’s back, lickety-split, “That’ll be $5.00”! Whatttt? $5 for a mixed drink? That’s really inexpensive for Durham and I’m liking the Accordion Club even better now! They don’t have a huge selection of drafts or bottled beers but the choices are solid and cheap. And at the bar, I spy another oddity, a retro hot dog heater! Yep, I had read online that the Accordion Club does some dogs and green chile stew, there are also heaters for cheese sauce and beef chili to top the dogs with. Based upon a short menu, it also looks like they mix it all up to put together some Frito pies for their patrons, cool!
We head back up front, where the Accordion Club has some table console games along with the pool table. We spend the rest of the evening shooting some pool to finish things off with our drinks. And while our pool-playing sort of sucked, the Accordion Club rocks! From the space (modern 70’s vibe) to the drinks, crowd and bartenders, I was pretty impressed all around. And the fact that it’s off the main Rigsbee Avenue drag keeps things very chill here. They even serve delicious breakfast burritos on Sunday mornings to finish off the weekend. So if you live in the neighborhood, definitely give the Accordion Club a try! If I lived in the hood, I could definitely seeing it being my regular bar for a quick drink, great conversation and chili dogs…